Sports participants and particularly track and field participants often participate without gym socks on their feet for the reasons that gym socks, particularly those having tubes or hoses that extent above the ankle of the wearer, add weight to the participant, particularly as perspiration is absorbed by the sock, and retain body heat. Added weight and heat retention are especially disadvantageous for long-distance runners. Oftentimes, the decision not to wear gym socks is dictated by these reasons rather than by comfort, since wearing athletic shoes without socks is not particularly comfortable to the wearer.
An alternative to tube socks is tubeless socks of short-length, which generally are cut below the ankle of the wearer. These socks decrease weight and heat retention, and they are also stylish, especially for the female participants in sports such as golf and tennis, in which the participant generally prefers not to wear socks having tubes extending above the ankles. However, the use of these short-length socks is less than desirable in many instances because they tend to ride or slide into the heel cavity of the athletic shoe as the wearer walks or runs (this will happen with standard-length socks in many instances). Consequently, some persons will not wear even short-length socks.
Some attempts have been made to prevent or minimize the extent of riding, sliding, or working of the heel portion of a short-length sock into the heel cavity of a shoe. Some socks primarily designed for female wearers contain tassels extending from the top (the collar or opening) of the heel of the sock. These tassels lay over the back of the athletic shoe and are intended to provide some resistance to the riding or sliding down of the heel of the sock into the shoe. However, because these tassels are not immovably affixed to the outside of the heel area of the shoe, the sock still tends to ride into the shoe. In fact, this riding action can occur with sufficient force to break the tassels and to continue with no resistance whatsoever. Another attempt has been to fold an extension of the top or collar of a short-length sock down over the top of a shoe. Still another attempt has been to provide an elastic neck at or near the collar of the sock to attempt to prevent slippage. These attempts also suffer from the deficiency that although some resistance to slippage may occur, slippage is not totally prevented. Furthermore, these attempts have not always worked satisfactorily.
One attempt has been made to fasten the sock to the shoe, and this was by providing a fastening means contained on the sock or shoe or both. See U.S. Pat. No. 2,238,804. This attempt suffers from the disadvantage that modifications must be made to either the sock or shoe or both and thus special socks and/or shoes are required. Moreover, this patent discloses attaching the turned-down collar of a short-length sock to the sides of a shoe. This mode of attachment does not prevent the back or heel of the sock from riding into the shoe.
The present invention overcomes the above-described problems and disadvantages. It allows a person to wear a sock which will not at the heel or other region ride or slide into the shoe of the wearer. Of particular importance, the present invention does not require specially modified socks and/or shoes. This allows universal application. The invention comprises a connector which can be detachably fastened at one end to the rear of the sock at or above the heel region and which can be detachably fastened at the other end to the outside of the rear or heel region of a shoe. This connector, when fastened, completely restrains riding or sliding of the sock into the shoe.